Last Resort(46)

“The hell you are.” His father slammed his hands down on his desk and stood, his face going a deep shade of red. “You’ve known my plans for over a year. This goes against the family, and I won’t stand by and watch you destroy everything I’ve worked hard for.”

“You.” He watched his father start pacing in front of the large windows overlooking the clear-skied beaches. “Everything you’ve worked hard for. Great-granddad won this place by chance. Grandpa worked his whole life to make it what it is today, and you’ve maintained it.” He stood. “I don’t want to be a maintenance man. I want to set out on my own, using my own skills. If I succeed or fail, it’s on me.”

“You’re doing this because of that girl.” His father turned on him.

Luke shook his head. “No.” He thought about it. “Well, maybe Cassey had a little to do with it. I’m doing this because I’m tired of being in your shadow. Of being in Calvin’s shadow. He was the son who was supposed to be by your side, not me. I want to make something of myself. Find out who Luke Callaway is and maybe make a living out of something I love.”

That seemed to throw his father off. He stood across from him, looking at Luke like he was someone he didn’t know.

“What about the plans to expand Crystal Shores?”

“You’re fighting a losing battle in Surf Breeze. Besides, you’re going to need the locals behind you and destroying something that’s been around longer than most of them isn’t the way to go about it.”

His father crossed his arms and turned his back on him to look out the windows. Luke walked up beside him, looking down at the people and families playing on the cold beach. As they stood there in silence, he realized that for the first time in his life, he’d told his father exactly how he felt.

As he drove the lone road to Surf Breeze later that day, he wondered what it would take for his father to trust him completely. He wasn’t going to fool himself into believing his father would stop trying to persuade him to follow his plans. He knew it was only a matter of his father recovering before he would try his next scheme.

If he knew his father, by the time he made it back to Cassey, he would already have a new plan in place. Which got him thinking about how he could secure his future, their future.

He’d fallen for her, and hard. There was hardly a moment that went by during the day that he wasn’t thinking about her. He knew she was still under the impression that they were just having a physical relationship, but he had plans to show her he meant to stick around.

Deciding to make the first move tonight, he tried to stay within the speed limit, though he wanted to rush back to her and start their future.





Cassey stood back and watched the band set up. Friday night was her favorite night. Many people who lived close by would travel across the big bridge and highway to Surf Breeze and enjoy an evening out. Since her place had some of the best live music in town, a lot of the locals ended up there. She knew most of them by name; they all knew her. Because it was now officially off-season, the crowd in the bar and grill was down to just over two dozen. All in all, not a bad night.

Actually, this last week, since opening her doors again, she’d seen an increase in traffic. Locals came out in droves to support her, stopping by to chat with her and let her know they were behind her. Even some people she hadn’t seen since school showed up.

It was nice to see everyone again and to feel the support.

Too many times during the week, she’d wished that Luke was there. Even though she spent almost an hour each evening on the phone with him, she tried to persuade herself that she wasn’t becoming attached to him. She knew she needed to sort out her feelings sooner or later but tried to keep herself busy so that she didn’t have too much time to think about it.

He was due back later that evening, and she tried to not watch the front door, but her eyes scanned the crowd, looking for his dark eyes and sexy smile.

After the band started playing, she headed to her office for a break with a Coke in her hand. Tonight was a two-Coke kind of evening, so she had to counteract the sugar with a sandwich from the kitchen. As she sat at her desk, eating her turkey on wheat and sipping her second Coke, she noticed the large envelope that she’d forgotten about.

Ripping it open, she pulled out the contents and completely lost her appetite. She was still sitting there when Luke walked in over an hour later.

“Hey.” He smiled and walked across the room to sit on her couch. He rested his head back and closed his eyes. “Am I glad that week is over. You won’t believe the lengths my father went to avoid talking to me.” He chuckled and then looked up at her. “What?” He sat up, looking at her more closely. “What’s wrong?”